Synthesis, Winter 2022

Class pets bring joy to AU students

By Emmerette Boice

When walking the halls of the science floor in Watkins Hall at Anderson University, you are bound to hear professors teaching and students rushing to get to class, but if you listen closely, you may also hear hissing and bubbling water. These unexpected noises come from the permanent residents of the biology department, a ball python, three axolotls, and several hissing cockroaches.

Fifteen years ago, the Anderson biology department students decided they wanted to have a department pet, said Carrie Koenigstein, associate dean of sciences and professor of biology. After researching animals, Koenigstein said she determined that a snake would be the perfect, long-living, department pet. Very shortly after, Nagini, a ball python, came to live in one of the biology classrooms where she still resides today.

“When we got her she was a brand-new baby. She had eaten one meal. She was just a little tiny thing,” said Koenigstein.

Nagini, a ball python, rests her head on the hand of student worker AnnMargaret Phillips. Nagini has lived in the AU biology department for the last 15 years.

Photo by Emmerette Boice

Nagini is a fan favorite of the department. She is around 4 feet, 6 inches long but is incredibly gentle despite her intimidating appearance. Nagini is often used as an example in the biology classes, whether in representing her species or as an exquisite example of muscle movement.

“Nagini has also visited church a few times for youth group events as well as a couple of elementary schools,” Koenigstein said.

Joni Criswell

AU photo

Joni Criswell, department chair and associate professor of biology, said she added axolotls to the department pet roster. Axolotls are small salamander-like aquatic animals.

One of the three AU axolotls watches students studying in the biology department hallway.

Photo by Emmerette Boice

Criswell said she had owned an axolotl for 10 years and saw in them a good teaching opportunity. Three axolotls now dwell in a spacious tank in the biology department hallway.

Axolotls are unique creatures as they remain in their physical juvenile developmental state when fully grown and have the ability to regrow limbs, which is a rare quality for a vertebrate animal.

They are also temperamental animals that require diligent care and specific living conditions to thrive, Criswell said.

“They routinely will get their toes or feet caught in something and instead of just struggling, it (the limb) just pulls off and it’s not a big deal for them because they’ll grow it back,” said Criswell.

A hissing cockroch displays itself in its tank on the biology hall.

Photo by Emmerette Boice

The hissing cockroaches live in a small tank near the axolotls and are either an object of fascination or terror for people. The female hissing cockroaches are around the same size as a typical household cockroach, while the males are typically a little bigger.

She said the insects are used in biology classes and to scare the unsuspecting friends of biology students.

According to Criswell, the hissing cockroaches, unlike common German cockroaches, make a sharp hissing noise, do not dart about as much, and have small suction cups on their legs that allow them to cling to whatever they are standing on.

The animals are cared for by a student worker, AnnMargaret Phillips, a senior biology major with a minor in biomedical sciences who plans to go to veterinary school.

Senior biology major AnnMargaret Phillips holds the department ball python, Nagini. Philips is the caretaker for the department’s pets.

Photo by Emmerette Boice

She began taking care of the animals in the fall semester of her junior year.

Phillips cleans the animals’ living areas, feeds them and checks in on their health.

“Axolotls are very permeable to their surroundings,” said Philips, meaning they are easily affected by their environment, and must be watched carefully. She said the ball python gets respiratory infections occasionally and must be monitored for them.

The students appreciate the presence of the animals in the department. When Philips or a professor is around, the students can even get Nagini out of her tank and hold her.

According to biology student Brooks Davis, Nagini is “like a therapy snake.”

“I feel like anybody that’s in STEM will tell you that it’s hard... I see it a lot, people will come up here and sit and look at the axolotls, and it helps them,” Davis said.

“I think they add an element of fun and excitement,” Koenigstein said.